Sublimation exists in a plethora of variegated forms. There is chemical sublimation. And there is psychological sublimation. And while what it does in each field is remarkably different, the definition behind it remains the same. Sublimation is the conversion of thought or matter into an altered state of being without it first going through an intermediary process – this intermediate process rendered unnecessary by either natural phenomena, or a need to survive.
Chemically, this process can be seen in the alteration dry ice goes through, when transforming from a solid into a gas without becoming a liquid interim. Sans using overly technical jargon, the conversion takes place when a frozen gas like carbon dioxide gets introduced to a very dry heat. The heat causes the dense molecules inside of the frozen gas to begin moving so rapidly, that they get released from their bonds without transforming into a liquid.
Psychologically though, sublimation works a tad bit differently. As people, as we hit maturity, we begin to distinguish ourselves through our sexual likes and dislikes, eg. some people are bisexual, gay, heterosexual, pansexual, transexual, and every definition in between. When we hit our sexual milestones, some of our behaviors in trying to living out our desires – typically those which we believe others might find socially unacceptable – we hide. We hide them so much on the inside, that they come to show themselves in unusual ways. These unusual ways are socially acceptable means of expressing our desires, and experiencing them without fear of being ostracized for having them. And with their underlying desire pacified, there is no longer a need to share them in possibly dangerous ways.
Though the differences in sublimation between chemical reaction and psychology can seem as being as different as night and idea, the idea behind them remains very much the same. Neither one of them are a direct change from what they were into what they become. If they were, dry ice would turn into a liquid before anything else. And our desires would just fall away, or disappear completely, without us ever having to suffer through the fear of the possible social repercussions of having them.
In this sense, it feels as though science and human nature have come to stand as perfect reflections of each other. Neither of them actually are what they are; neither of them remain what they once were, nor do they turn into what one might expect them to. It is beautiful.